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This year I am remembering the six members of the BOXALL family recorded on the war memorial in the parish church at West Dean (near Chichester), Sussex.

The identity of Arthur BOXALL on the West Dean war memorial is not absolutely clear. This is largely due to a lack of evidence, neither the Commonwealth War Grave Commission website or Soldiers Died in the Great War provide any information on his parentage or his age.

What is clear is from both of those sources is that Arthur was a private in the 1/4th Battalion Hampshire Regiment, his regimental number was 280201, and he died on the 23rd August 1916 in Mesoptamia. Soldiers Died in the Great War gives his full name as Arthur Thomas BOXALL, his place of birth as Stedham, Sussex (about seven miles north of West Dean), his residence as Chichester, Sussex and that he enlisted at Petersfield, Hampshire. Petersfield is not that many miles as the crow flies from West Dean or Chichester.

It seems likely, but is by no means certain, that Arthur was the son of George and Rosa BOXALL of West Dean, making him the brother of Alfred BOXALL that I wrote about yesterday. As there is no age or date of birth recorded I cannot be certain, Arthur Thomas BOXALL was the youngest of George and Rosa’s eight children, being baptised the 6th March 1892 at West Dean.

Of course Stedham is not far away from West Dean, but it does introduce an element of doubt, as does the fact that he enlisted at Petersfield, rather than Chichester where he was living. I obviously need to spend some more time trawling through newspapers trying to find some mention of his death.